Big bad wolves not so bad

WESTON - The wolf - often demonized, sometimes romanticized, and almost always mysterious - will be the subject of two hour-long presentations Saturday afternoon at the Weston Library.

The wolf - often demonized, sometimes romanticized, and almost always mysterious - will be the subject of two hour-long presentations Saturday afternoon at the Weston Library.

The program will be presented by Wolf Talk, a state and federally licensed organization established by Michael and Amy LeBlanc of Gardner to rectify misconceptions about the enigmatic animal. The LeBlancs will bring with them a live wolf, which they have raised from infancy, as a part of the event.

The program will also cover wolf behavior in captivity as well as in the wild, eating habits, and pack structure. There will also be a display of furs, skulls and other artifacts.

Wolves have long been a part of folklore across the northern hemisphere. They have been depicted as frightening, as in the Norse legend of the giant Fenrir, as well as gentle, as in the myth of Romulus and Remus and the birth of Rome.

But virtually every child in Europe and America is familiar with "Little Red Riding Hood" and the "Three Little Pigs" fairy tales in which the wolves appear as villains. It is from stories such as these that wolves get their reputation as bloodthirsty killers, a charge Michael LeBlanc says is totally unjustified.

"There has been no documented case in North America of a healthy wolf attacking a human being," he said. "Obviously, if the animal has rabies, this might be a different story, as it would be with any rabid animal."

In fact, LeBlanc said, wolves are terrified of people.

"If they see or smell a human presence, they'll run for their lives, literally. We once came on three wolves in Minnesota. They were starving and were after a deer, but when they saw us they gave up the chase and disappeared."

According to the Wolf Talk Web site, wolves roamed and hunted the land freely many years ago. Today, "this beautiful and elusive animal has become endangered, and some have vanished forever from the places they called home.

"The disappearance of these great creatures of the wild is not a mystery. Man, out of unfounded fears and misunderstanding, has falsely accused and persecuted the wolf almost to the point of oblivion."

LeBlanc said he's always loved wolves.

"I'm half Native American, so they're part of my culture," he said. "Then, in the 1970s, I started working at a zoo and I was put in charge of the wolves."

The educational arc of his career began in 1980 when a schoolteacher friend asked him, as a favor, to bring one of his wolves into the classroom. He did, and the teacher gave his contact information to all her friends and colleagues. The program snowballed. Now, the LeBlancs present more than 40 programs a year at schools, libraries and other venues. They also lead "wolf walks" and camping and other events for the public.

The LeBlancs have five wolves, all from the same bloodline. The oldest male will be 18 in March, and the LeBlancs, like proud parents, will show photos and family trees to interested visitors.

The goal of the Wolf Talk organization is to restore the wolf to the American wilderness, he said.

"I hope that our talk in Weston," LeBlanc said, "will help people realize that they have many misconceptions about the wolf and that hopefully we can coexist with them. They actually make our environment so much better because they tend to cull sick and diseased animals as their prey, which means that only healthy individuals remain to reproduce."

The LeBlancs' presentation, which is suitable for all ages, is free and open to the public. Those who wish to attend must pick up tickets in advance, either at the reference desk or in the children's room of the Weston Library. Snow date is Dec. 8.

The first presentation begins at 1:30 p.m., with a repeat at 3 p.m. There is a maximum of 80 tickets per show. For more information call 781-893-3312, ext. 3.

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